


Worthy

by Kadorienne



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-30
Updated: 2016-01-30
Packaged: 2018-05-17 04:06:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,402
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5853466
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kadorienne/pseuds/Kadorienne
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The princes of Asgard show whether they are worthy.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Worthy

**Author's Note:**

> This fic was conceived long before _Thor 2_ was released and is completely incompatible with it. It takes place after _Avengers_.

It was the first time Thor had ever managed to surprise Loki.

Loki had sensed Thor’s approach from realms away and was ready for battle. Since he had escaped from Asgard’s dungeon mere months after his invasion of Midgard, he had led his not-brother a merry chase throughout the Nine Realms, causing trouble wherever he fancied, waiting for Asgard’s warriors to thwart him and slipping away sometimes moments before he would have been apprehended. On a couple of occasions, Thor and his idiot friends _did_ apprehend him, but Loki invariably escaped before they could return him to Asgard.

All the Nine Realms now knew that Thor could not defeat Loki.

So as Loki brewed mischief in the wilderness of Alfheim, he awaited his not-brother’s arrival, and prepared himself to fight. But Thor had come alone, without an army or even his brainless friends, and the moment he caught sight of Loki in the middle of the field where Loki had erected a stone table on which to do his magic, he landed, dropped Mjölnir and stepped away from it.

Loki tensed himself for a trap, but Thor only stood still in the pale dawn sunlight, hands open, palms out. “I am not here to fight. I wish to speak with you, br- Loki.”

“You are finally releasing that pretense?” Loki tried to ignore the wrench inside as he spoke. It was for him to deny their brotherhood, not Thor, _never_ Thor….

“I will never cease to think of you as my brother. I merely do not wish to argue about that at this moment. We can argue about whether we are brothers later, if you wish.”

Loki did not lower his spear, and his magic was ready to smite the thunderer at an instant’s notice. “Then what do you wish to argue about?”

He could see the movement of Thor’s throat beneath his beard. “We want you to come home. Mother, Father, and I.”

Loki sneered. “You know Asgard’s dungeon cannot hold me.”

“We do. We do not mean to put you in Asgard’s dungeon.”

“Then where-”

“We mean to put you on its throne.”

Loki stared, too shocked even to say if he believed or disbelieved the statement.

“We miss you and wish you to cease the evil you have been doing. We cannot compel you save by killing you, which none of us are willing to do. We would offer you your old place back if we thought-”

That unleashed a fierce torrent of words from Loki. “That I would consent to being Asgard’s spare prince again? So you may resume ignoring me when I warn you of the foolhardiness of the battles you choose? And you and your brainless friends may ridicule me when I save your hides after _you_ endangered us all? And then later I can listen to you all brag of your valor and pretend you do not owe me your lives a hundred thousand times over? And I may watch our - _your_ father doting upon you and forgetting my existence? What a tempting offer.”

Loki stopped, eyes glittering. Thor had visibly restrained himself from interrupting, flinching at each sentence as from a lash.

When it became clear that Loki was finished, Thor spoke quietly, gravely. 

“I will not presume to ask for your forgiveness for all of that, Loki. But I am sorry. And now I am trying to make amends.”

Silence stretched in the chilly dawn air as the two studied each other.

“Go on.”

“If you did wish to be Asgard’s second prince again, my future right hand, we would value you as you deserve this time. But we all know that is too little to offer you. So we offer you everything.”

“Everything.”

“Return to Asgard and Father will put Gungnir in your hand, pass the throne to you before all Asgard. I will be your loyal right hand, fighting to uphold your rule. Serving you for the rest of my days.”

Loki scrutinized him. He had a thousand plans for every contingency he could imagine, but this was something he had never dreamt of. 

Eventually Thor spoke again.

“If you use the throne for evil purposes, we will unseat you. You no doubt realize that. But I do not believe that you will. I was too vain and selfish to admit it, but in my heart I always knew that if the Norns decreed that the throne fall to you, you would sit it better than I.”

“Do you think me a fool? I will return to Asgard and your father will attempt to arrest me again. Or kill me.”

“Loki, I give you my word-“

“ _You_ may be making this offer in earnest, but he is not. He would never-”

“He gave his word to Mother.”

That drew Loki up short. He could not imagine Odin breaking an oath made to _her._

“And he has arranged - a sign. Of his trust in you. As well as a test of whether you merit it.”

Loki’s eyebrows lifted. “Really.”

Thor gestured to Mjölnir. “Pick it up.”

Thor felt a fleeting satisfaction at Loki’s shocked expression. After a long hesitation, Loki stepped to the hammer, put his hand on its shaft… and lifted it.

For a few precious seconds, Loki’s expression was unguarded. His eyes were wide, his lips slightly parted in wonder. Thor knew that he was watching one of his brother’s dreams come true. He smiled, despite the pain in his own heart.

“We knew Mjölnir would not allow you to lift her unless you meant to be a good king. To serve Asgard well.”

Loki’s eyes darted to Thor, sharp as a blade. Then he held Mjölnir out to Thor.

Thor automatically reached to take it, though he knew what would happen. The moment Loki released it, the hammer thudded to the ground.

Again Loki was shocked.

Thor smiled. The movement was actually painful. “The hammer knows her proper master. She knows who Asgard needs.”

It was a long minute before Loki’s silver tongue could form words. “Asgard needs you. And always shall.”

 

The moment Thor and Loki returned to Asgard, guards escorted them to the throne room. The court was hastily summoned while Frigga tearfully embraced her adopted son, and then Odin entered the room and kept his promise. Loki knelt before him, and rose holding Gungnir in one hand and Mjölnir in the other, and seated himself upon Hlidskjalf. He received oaths of fealty with a little smile, his eyes returning to his adopted family often. He had the pleasure of seeing his foster brother kneel before him and swear loyalty and obedience. At length he ended the audience and the royal family left the room surrounded by bowing courtiers and warriors.

In the corridor, Loki turned to Frigga. “Mother, may I have your company for the afternoon?”

She gave him the impish smile so like his own. He had always believed he had inherited it from her. “If my king commands it.”

“He does not. But your - adopted son requests it.”

“Do you wish to come to my garden, as you used to?”

“I would like nothing better.”

Frigga bowed her head. “Nor would I.”

“I shall be there shortly, then. There is one thing I must do first.” Loki found that there was one thing he could not put off saying to her. “Mother, I give you my word that this time, I shall not fail you.”

She blinked back tears. “I know you shan’t, my son. I - we shall talk over everything. But I know you will serve Asgard well.”

Loki nodded. “Thor, I must confer with you as well, but it will have to wait until tomorrow morning.”

“Yes, my king.” Thor could not help a small hitch in the words, but then he smiled, and there was peace in the smile as his eyes moved from Loki to their mother.

As for Loki, he could not restrain himself from grinning fiercely at hearing those words from Thor. But he concealed it with a glamour, so his family saw the cool expression that might have been expected had Thor been addressing him thus for a hundred years.

Now Loki looked at the former king. “Odin-”

“ _My son._ Will you not call me Father?”

Loki only looked at him.

Odin sighed. “I hope you will, in time. What is it?”

“I must speak with you privately. Now.”

Together they went to the audience chamber, Loki leading the way, and inside Loki dismissed the guards before sitting down - before Odin sat. Loki felt very conscious of the change in their positions. Even with Gungnir in his hand he expected Odin to explode with wrath at his presumption, but Odin was visibly reining himself in as he took a seat across the heavy golden table from Loki.

But Odin was of course going to try to control the conversation, if only by speaking first. “What is it you wished to discuss with me?”

“Mjölnir. You know what it means to him. Change it back.”

Odin studied him. “You know its secret.” It was not a question.

“That the tale you spun us about the hammer measuring his worth is so much piffle? Of course.” Loki’s eyes were cold. “You encouraged his vanity enough, you did not need to make up that absurd story. The hammer is liftable by whomever you wish to lift it. It has never been more than your whim.”

“I am sorry if it pained you, Loki.”

 _“If?”_ Loki gave an ugly laugh. “You watched me struggle to move the damned thing after every feat of valor or rescue I could devise. Did you never have any mercy for me in your heart? Never think that perhaps you had slapped me down enough?”

Odin lowered his head.

“I’m surprised Thor didn’t work it out himself after Jotunheim. If Mjölnir really measured worth, it would have dropped the moment he decided to go there. Or when he began slaughtering Jotuns by the dozen because one of them uttered a playground insult. But it only dropped when you told it to. My dear brother has ever been a fool, but even he should have seen through the ruse then.”

“But he did not.”

“No. So tonight at the feast, restore the old enchantment when I bid him take the hammer back. I need my champion to be properly armed if he is to defend my rule.” Loki looked at Odin sharply. “Did you tell him the truth of how it works?”

“No. I told him that you would only be able to lift it if you truly meant to be a good king.”

Loki snorted. “Good. Never tell him the truth.”

“You do not wish him humbled?”

“Humbled? How much more humbled can he be? I have taken his throne. Let him keep his hammer.” Loki sighed. “I did want vengeance upon him. Not to kill him, but to hurt him for all the hurt he has given me. And then he knelt to me and offered me everything he had. I have _had_ my vengeance.”

Odin’s eye was piercing. “Is it sweet?”

“You know that it is bitter. But I could not rest until I had tasted it.”

Odin nodded. He began to speak, but Loki rose and left without another word, and Odin did not stoop to calling after him.

Loki spent the next few hours in his mother’s garden, sharing tears and embraces and mutual assurances. After they had said all they must - several times over - they sat holding each other’s hands in silence for a long while, gazing alternately at each other and at the late afternoon sunlight on her flowers. 

In that relieved silence, Loki entertained thoughts he could not share even with Frigga. Thoughts of Thor.

Thor had proven, not only his affection, which Loki had never truly doubted, but his loyalty. He wanted his brother back enough, he was remorseful enough over his past cruelty, to give up his throne and his hammer in atonement. He had come far from the braggart who started a war and nearly got his friends and his brother killed because someone called him a princess.

By giving up the throne, Thor had at last proven his worthiness for it. And in recognition of that fact, one day Loki would yield it to him. He would be King Thor’s loyal right hand as he had always planned, and Thor would be grateful to him and appreciate his service as Loki had always dreamed. Loki would indeed have everything he had ever wanted, except for his father’s regard, but he knew now that that had always been an impossible dream.

But first, Loki would rule. For a century, perhaps. He would repair every error of Odin’s hubris, and wrest respect from every realm in the Nine - including his own. Only when all recognized his fitness for the throne would he relinquish it. Oh, he would be a good king. There would be no need for Thor to unseat him. He would prove everybody wrong.

At the height of the evening’s celebratory feast, Loki caught Odin’s eye, and then rose. Silence fell at once as the court waited for the words of its king.

“Thor.” Loki took Mjölnir and let it thud to the floor. “Lift your hammer.”

From Thor’s unhappy expression, Loki guessed that Thor believed that Loki’s purpose was to humiliate him by his failure. With resignation Thor reached for its shaft, and Loki darted a glance at Odin, and Odin made a small gesture noted by no one else, and Thor’s face lit in surprise and pleasure when Mjölnir came to his hand as it always had.

When the cheers of the court had begun to die down, Loki lifted a hand and spoke into the prompt silence.

“The hammer’s magic has laws of its own. It yielded itself to me in the service of your worthiness, Thor, of your sacrifice to rescue the Nine Realms from my depredations - and me from my own wickedness. Now it demands its rightful wielder once more… brother.”

Thor immediately crushed him in a fierce embrace. “My hammer is at your service… _brother_.” 

Loki returned the embrace with closed eyes. 

At last he had nearly everything he had ever wanted, now that he no longer truly merited it. Including that his brother had become a worthy man.


End file.
